
Methane emissions also result from livestock and other agricultural practices, land use and by the decay of organic waste in municipal solid waste landfills.


The GWP values appearing in the Emissions webpages reflect the values used in the U.S. The GWP takes into account the fact that many gases are more effective at warming Earth than CO 2, per unit mass. To convert emissions of a gas into CO 2 equivalent, its emissions are multiplied by the gas's Global Warming Potential (GWP). GHG emissions are often measured in carbon dioxide (CO 2) equivalent. For reference, a metric ton is a little bit larger (about 10%) than a U.S. Inventory uses metric units for consistency and comparability with other countries. Thus, a million metric tons is roughly the same mass as 1 million small cars!

For comparison, a small car is likely to weigh a little more than 1 metric ton. 6,457 million metric tons of CO 2: What does that mean?Ī million metric tons is equal to about 2.2 billion pounds, or 1 trillion grams.
